Chapter 48: The Inspirational Laughter

The man continued to laugh, but compared to before, his laughter seemed a bit forced and lacked the infectious energy it had previously.

He looked at the expression of the shield-bearing man in front of him and it became somewhat strange, as if he was beginning to doubt the opponent's abilities.

Just a moment ago, he thought he had evolved to a high and formidable degree, but he didn't expect his powerful long spear and heavy artillery to be as ineffective as scraping the itch in front of this person.

This guy was like an immovable human fortress!

Actually, just having a hard shield was not enough to achieve this effect. After all, the shield could only protect the vital parts of the body. No matter how hard it was, it would still fall short of the effect of a fortress.

But it didn't matter because Captain America's vibranium shield had two causal laws and divine techniques that went beyond scientific explanation.

First, in the majority of cases when the shield was thrown, whether it hit someone or rebounded in the environment, it always followed a trajectory that would astonish anyone and fly back into the hands of the captain. Even when the shield was caught by an enemy, there was a certain probability that under the influence of this mystical function, they would throw it back instead of running away with it. Just like what happened with the Winter Soldier in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Secondly, the shield itself possesses an incredibly effective superpower of taunting, which works on humans, monsters, aliens, and even machines with a success rate of one thousand percent. It is commonly known as the "you must attack the shield with taunting."

This move is one of the important factors that allows Captain America, despite having average abilities, to charge at the forefront of major events in the Avengers' battles against various gods. Whether facing a hail of bullets from cannon fodder or devastating attacks from god-level beings, they are always attracted to his invincible shield, as if under the influence of some indescribable cosmic will, they feel the need to shatter the shield first, otherwise it would be an unfair victory.

When it comes to the team dynamics of the early days of the MCU Avengers, general audiences might think that the position of the best tank goes to either the Hulk or Thor. However, Chu Cheng believes that it is not unreasonable to nominate Captain America's shield as the best tank, considering the amount of damage it can withstand.

Chu Cheng certainly wouldn't give his opponent a second chance. After Captain America deflected the first RPG and recovered, he immediately performed a feint and sprinted towards his opponent, directly thrusting towards his face.

At such a close distance, the RPG was no longer effective. The man with the smiling face immediately tried to transform into other weapons, but it was already too late. The vibranium shield smashed his head into the wall, followed by a punch to his abdomen.

This almost made him vomit out his stomach, and his body once again crashed through the wall behind him, which originally had a television hanging on it, with debris and rubble falling on the other side.

"Hahaha, impressive."

This guy can barely catch his breath but is still laughing strangely. Chu Cheng admires his perseverance. However, he didn't stop his actions either. Before the man could stand firm, Captain America had already charged towards him once again.

The man was half-kneeling on the ground and extended his right hand towards the direction of Captain America's punch. At the same time, his palm quickly began to deform in mid-air, rapidly expanding in size, and in an instant, it transformed into the shape of a shield.

It was a black shield, semi-spherical in shape, like an iron wall blocking the path of Captain America's fist.

Chu Cheng understood. It seemed that the opponent had made a move, resorting to a universal move: "If you can't beat them, join them."

Perhaps after going through a round of wielding various weapons, he realized that those flashy things were actually useless, and it was better to have a reliable shield like Captain America's.

So, he also summoned a shield of his own.

But it was obvious that he was just imitating and trying to replicate the success of Captain America's iconic vibranium shield with a casually summoned shield. How could it compare?

So, without changing his tactics or evading, Captain America unleashed a powerful punch directly towards the black shield.

Captain America's fist made contact with the shield's surface, and a tremendous force erupted along the kinetic chain, as if a bursting flood collided with the shield. The semi-spherical black shield immediately dented at the point of impact, and the force traveled through the shield, causing a crisp sound of bones cracking in the arm of the man holding the shield.

The man with the smiling face had his entire arm disabled. He was sent flying backward, along with the shield, and his pupils contracted while his smile froze for a moment.

Indeed, this punch was beyond scientific explanation.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Captain America took two steps forward, lifted his leg, and delivered a powerful kick straight into the man's chest. The impact from the sole of his boot caused his internal organs to shift, and his body soared through the air, crashing forcefully into the window behind him, flying across the entire room.

With a loud shattering sound, the glass broke, and cracks spread like a complex spider's web, as if the entire window was on the verge of shattering.

Chu Cheng held down the right key, aimed, and controlled Captain America to follow up with another shield attack. The flying shield, propelled by terrifying arm strength, hit the smiling man's head with a resounding explosion. It caused his neck to jerk backward, and the glass behind him shattered with a loud crash. The man, trailing a stream of blood, plummeted from the height of the sixth floor.

This combination attack, this terrifying monstrous strength, confirmed that he was indeed a monster, right?

For some reason, even though Felix was initially on the enemy's against, he suddenly felt that it was quite remarkable for the smiling man to hold on until now in the face of such a monster.

When Felix first saw his chilling smile and maniacal laughter, he felt horrified and creepy. But now, listening to his breathless laughter, it seemed to have a touch of motivation. How was that possible?

A great man once said, "You think her decibels aren't high enough, but it's just that your intensity isn't strong enough." This succinct and vivid analogy illustrates a simple and understandable truth: great strength works wonders.

Compared to the playboy with external gadgets, the green giant with underwear on the outside, and the alien man who can summon thunder at will, Captain America, had a relatively limited role within the Avengers. His role in the team was more focused on ideological construction rather than frontline damage output.

Of course, that's generally the case. But as everyone knows, one abstract aspect of American comics, whether in movies or animated series, is that superheroes are subjective, and their power levels can fluctuate according to the atmosphere and the needs of the plot.

Of course, this principle doesn't work well for tech-based heroes like Iron Man, whose abilities are defined by specific numerical values. Characters like him, who rely on scientific advancements, often don't explode but rather create a set of pseudo-scientific gadgets and even more fantastical armors when necessary. The Avengers can handle even more powerful threats when needed.

But it's different for mutants, especially someone like Captain America, who embodies the concept of "subjectivity" within the super-soldier serum. His strength can become extremely abstract when the plot requires it. With the right atmosphere, he can even go head-to-head with someone like Thanos, and even give Iron Man a run for his money.

At this moment, the man with the smiling face is struggling to get up from the sidewalk.

Surviving a fall from the sixth floor is not an easy feat even for an infected individual.

Covered in blood, the smiling man rises from the shattered concrete ground, but he continues to dryly chuckle, appearing particularly eerie in the dimly lit street.

His flesh is regenerating, and his bones are readjusting automatically. However, this process contorts his joints, giving him a grotesque and unnatural posture, resembling a bizarre creature crawling on the ground.

With his arm bones realigned, he was able to use his hands to support his body. While waiting for his bones to crackle and repair inside, he staggered to his feet.

During this process, he let out two more strange laughs, but before he could finish, he choked on his own blood, resulting in a peculiar cough.

Before he could fully stand upright, a shadow descended from the sky with a piercing sound. The Vibranium shield smashed his head back to the ground. The floor tiles shattered, and the man's head exploded like a watermelon, turning into a pulp.

At this moment, on the sixth-floor window ledge, Felix stood with an expression that said, "This shocked me for the whole year."

Did that guy just jump straight down from the sixth floor?